Ballistic Tape

ABSTRACT

A ballistic panel including two or more layers of ballistic material having a periphery, and a peripheral, liquid impervious edge treatment continuously surrounding the periphery without interruption.

BACKGROUND

The present disclosure relates generally to body armor and moreparticularly to ballistic panel assemblies used in body armor.

BRIEF SUMMARY

Many improvements have been made in body armor resulting in relativelycomfortable body vests and the like. Modem lightweight body armor oftenincludes flexible, ballistic resistant panels formed from any number ofpolymeric materials such as Kevlar® ballistic grade fibers/fabrics andother materials formed from para-aramid or polyethylene syntheticfibers. Metal or ceramic plates can also be used either by themselves orin conjunction with flexible ballistic resistant panels and while metalor ceramic plates offer additional protection that soft body armor, whenused alone, cannot offer, metal or ceramic plates have the drawback ofbeing rigid and accordingly less comfortable to wear for extendedperiods of time.

Although significant developments have been made in flexible, ballisticresistant body armor, it does have its shortcomings Specifically, it isknown that the performance of flexible body armor can be compromised ifthe flexible body armor is exposed to liquids.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is an isometric view of a ballistic vest assembly 10 whichincorporates front vest panel 12 and rear vest panel 14;

FIG. 2 is the rear vest panel 14 taken from the ballistic vest 10 ofFIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a ballistic panel assembly portion 22 of the rear vest panel14 of

FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a partial cross sectional view taken through lines 4-4 of FIG.3 showing a tape embodiment;

FIG. 5A is a partial cross sectional view taken through lines 5-5 ofFIG. 3 showing a double-sided tape embodiment;

FIG. 5B is a partial cross sectional view taken substantially throughlines 5-5 of FIG. 3 showing an adhesive embodiment;

FIG. 5C is a partial cross sectional view taken substantially throughlines 5-5 of FIG. 3 showing a heat sealing method;

FIG. 5D is a partial cross sectional view taken substantially throughlines 5-5 of FIG. 3 showing an ultrasonic welding method;

FIG. 6 is another embodiment of the ballistic panel assembly;

FIG. 7 is a partial cross sectional view taken substantially throughlines 7-7 of FIG. 6;

FIG. 8A-8D are yet additional embodiments showing a cap member which isnot comprised of tape;

FIG. 9A-9C show yet another embodiment which does not depend on a capmember for sealing liquids from entering between the plies.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Ballistic panels can be incorporated into any number of vestments wornby soldiers, police officers, and the like. One common type of ballisticvestment is a ballistic vest 10 shown in FIG. 1. Ballistic vest 10 istypically an assembly and may be comprised of one or more vest panels(such as front vest panel 12 and rear vest panel 14). Front panel 12 andrear panel 14 can be selectively joined to one another by using anynumber of joining techniques including using shoulder straps 16 and sidetorso straps 20. Straps 16 and 20 can be made operational by way of anycommon type of joining system such as belts, zippers, hook and loopfasteners and the like. Both front 12 and rear 14 panels may include anouter carrier 11 which may be the visible portion of the ballistic vestand which carries therein a ballistic panel assembly 22. Carrier 11 maycompletely encase assembly 22 or may encase portions thereof.

Now referring to FIGS. 1, 2, 3 and 4, ballistic panel assembly 22 (alsoknown as ballistic package 22) can be comprised of two or more layers orplies 24. Each ply may be formed from flexible polymeric material orfibers such as para-aramid or polyethylene synthetic fibers, or thelike.

Two or more plies 24 may be sandwiched between a first face 25 and asecond face 26 of first and second plies respectively. In the embodimentof FIG. 4, the peripheral edge along the entire ballistic panel assembly22 is sealed using a peripheral treatment which forms and anti-liquidingress system 26. In the embodiment of FIG. 4, the anti-liquid ingresssystem 31 is formed using tape 27. Tape 27 is formulated to be comprisedof a back face and an adhesive face 30. Collectively tape back face 29and tape adhesive face 30 form a cap member 28 which extends across aportion of first face 25, along the edges of all of the plies 24 andalong a portion of second face 26 (see FIG. 4). By extending cap 28along the entire periphery of ballistic panel assembly 22, a protectivecontinuous cap is formed impeding the ability of one or more liquidtypes (e.g. oil based liquids and water based liquids) to penetrate(wick) between or within plies 24. By preventing liquids from wickinginto the interstices between adjacent plies 24, or between the warps andwefts of each within each ply, the integrity of the ballistic panelassembly 22 to perform to its highest standard is maintained possible.Tape back face 29 can be comprised of any number of materials which areimpervious to water based and oil based liquids. For example, polymer,fiberglass, or carbon based fibrous materials can be used to fabricatetape back face 29. Also combinations of two or more of these fibrousmaterials can also be used to fabricate tape back face 29. Also, metalfoil materials can be used to comprise tape back face 29. The adhesivesdeposited on and carried by tape adhesive face 30 can be any number ofcompositions which are both impervious to water based liquids andpetroleum based liquids. Such adhesives include elastomers,thermoplastics, emulsions or thermosets, rubber, polychloroprene,acrylic, urethanes, polymides, epoxies, polyvinyl acetate (PVAC),heat/ultrasonic seals. Other types of materials that can be used fortape back face 29 include vinyl, polyester, polyamide, polyethylene,polypropylene, PTFE tape. The term “tape” as it is used herein is usedto describe a material that is prefabricated having a back face 29 andan adhesive face 30, wherein the adhesive face 30 is joined to the backface 29 prior to any assembly steps disclosed herein.

Now referring to FIGS. 5A-5D, in another embodiment, ballistic assembly22 does not include the tape cap 28 edge treatment 26 as shown in FIG.1, but rather includes a peripheral edge treatment 26 which utilizesfolding over at least one of the first ply 25′ or the second ply 26′onto the remaining face. For example, FIG. 5A shows the second ply 26′of two or more plies 24 cut larger than the remaining plies in order toprovide sufficient material to cover the stacked edges of plies 24 andalso to fold upon and overlap a portion 27 of first face 25 of first ply25′. By cutting second ply 26′ large enough so that it provides surplusmaterial 23 and 27, in effect, the excess material 23, 27 forms theanti-liquid ingress system 31. Of course, the overlap (i.e. seam) 27between second ply 26′ and first face 25 of first ply 25′ must be liquidtight in order to prevent the ingress of liquids between plies 24 alongtheir peripheral edges. One such method of sealing the seam betweenoverlapping portions of second ply 26′ and first ply 25′ is to introducedouble-sided tape 38 between the adjoining surfaces of second ply 26′and first ply 25′.

Another method for sealing the overlap between first ply 25′ and secondply 26′ is to introduce an adhesive 40 between the overlapping portionsof first ply 25′ and second ply 26′ (see FIG. 5B). Adhesive 40 may becomprised of any number of adhesives which are impervious to water basedliquids and petroleum based liquids. Such adhesive might includesilicone based adhesives, epoxy based adhesives, or any of the adhesivesmentioned herein.

Now referring to FIG. 5C, still yet another means of sealing theoverlapping portions of first ply 25′ and second ply 26′ are to use heatsealing methods to seal the overlapping plies 25′, 26′. For example,FIG. 5C shows heat source 42 which is operatively coupled to an upperpinch arm 44 and a lower pinch arm 46. Manipulating means 48 can be usedto manipulate 50, 52 pinch arms 44, 46 away from or towards plies 24.Manipulating means 48 can include any number of hydraulic,electromechanical, or other motors which are capable of manipulatingarms 44, 46 into and out of a pinch position. Once manipulating means 48manipulate arms 44, 46 into a pinch (i.e. compressed) position (pinchposition shown in FIG. 5C), heat source 42 activates a heat generatingdevice (such as an electric heat source) which, in turn, heats pincharms 44, 46 and directs heat via thermal conduction into the plies 24.Plies 44 can be comprised of, or coated with, any number ofthermo-plastic type materials which will liquefy when heated and thenresolidify when cooled. This heating process can cause the plies to“melt” together forming a liquid tight barrier.

Now referring to FIG. 5D, still in another embodiment, ultrasonicwelding techniques (using an ultrasonic welder 42′) can be used(similarly to the heat techniques shown and discussed in FIG. 5C), tocreate an elevated temperature between plies 24. This elevatedtemperature will act in the same way it did in conjunction with theembodiment of FIG. 5C to solidify plies 24 together thereby forming aliquid impervious barrier.

Now referring to FIG. 6, ballistic panel assembly 22′ can be composed oftwo or more plies which are sandwiched between a first ply 25′ having afirst face 25 and second ply 26′ having a second face 26. At least oneof the first ply 25′ or second ply 26′ includes extended portions whichextend across the ply edge portions 23 and partially across 27 the firstface 25 of the first ply 25′. In this embodiment, the anti-liquidingress system 26 is at least partially formed by a liquid impermeablemember 39 which is adhered to both first face 25 and second face 26 andwhich spans across the seam 54 which is formed at the interface ofsecond ply 26′ and the first face 25 of first ply 25′. Liquidimpermeable member 39 of FIG. 7 can be comprised of tape (as it has beendefined herein) or it can also be comprised of any of the systems setforth in FIGS. 5A-5D used for creating a liquid-proof ingress.

Now referring to FIGS. 8A-8D, another embodiment may include a cap 28′which is not comprised from tape. Rather, cap 28′ is comprised of awater impervious material such as foil, vinyl, polyester, polyimide,polyethylene, polypropylene, PTFE, fiberglass mating, water imperviouscoated fabrics (such as coated cotton fabrics), or the like. In theembodiment set forth in FIGS. 8A-8D, because cap 28′ is not a tape (i.e.it does not carry a pre-adhesive face 30) various methods are employedfor creating a water tight seal between the first and second faces 25,26 respectively.

For example, in the embodiment of FIG. 8A, cap 28′ is fabricated fromliquid impervious material. Prior to placing cap 28′ onto plies 24, acontinuous piece of double-sided tape 38 is laid along the entire outerperimeter of ballistic panel 22. Double-sided tape 38 should be wideenough so that it not only continuously spans the end portions 38 of twoor more plies 24 but that it also covers a portion of first face 27 andsecond face 27′. The system of FIG. 8A allows a cap 28′ to be used ofany suitable material and a double-sided tape 38 to be used therewithhaving suitable adhesives that resist water or petroleum based liquids.Thus, divorcing the cap material 28′ from the adhesives gives thedesigner great flexibility in matching the performance characteristicsof cap 28′ and double-sided tape 38 to the ballistic panel applicationat hand.

Now referring to FIG. 8B, cap 28′ can be adhered to first face 25 andsecond face 26 by use of adhesives 40. The types of adhesives underconsideration here are the same adhesives that are mentioned in theembodiment of FIG. 5B and which have already been discussed.

Now referring to FIG. 8C, cap 28′ can be joined to plies 24 by using thesame heat apparatus and method as described for use in FIG. 5C.

Now referring to FIG. 8D, describes the use of cap 28 and joining itwith the first and second faces of plies 24. The same ultrasonicapparatus and techniques disclose in conjunction with FIG. 5D can alsobe used in securing the cap 28′ shown in the embodiment of FIG. 8D.

Now referring to FIGS. 9A-9C, in another embodiment, the ballistic panelassembly 22 may employ an anti-liquid ingress system 26 which does notuse a cap 28, 28′ nor does it use a fold over of first ply or secondply. Specifically, the embodiment set forth in FIGS. 9A-9C includes aperipheral treatment system 26 which joins plies 24 together directlywithout the need of cap 28, 28′ or overlapping portions of first orsecond plies 25′, 26′ respectively. Specifically, FIG. 9A depicts anembodiment wherein each ply face is adhesively joined to the face of itsadjoining ply. Specifically, in the method of FIG. 9A, an adhesive isplaced in a continuous bead around the outer periphery of each ply face.Once the adhesive layers 40 have been deposited continuously along theply faces, a compressive force 50, 52 is exerted onto the first face 25and the second face 26 wherein the adhesive is compressed therebetween.Once the adhesive has had a chance to solidify, the compressive forcesexerted 50, 52 can be removed and the plies 24 will have a liquidimpervious outer perimeter which prevents water from ingressing from theply edges into the interstices between the plies.

Now referring to FIG. 9B, shows a heat source being used to compress theplies 24 along a continuous peripheral edge portion. The heat source isused similar to that which has been discussed in conjunction with FIGS.5C and FIG. 8C such that the heat source liquefies or melts portions ofthe plies thereby causing the plies to generally melt together with oneanother forming a liquid impervious outer peripheral around ballisticpanel assembly 22. In cases where the polymeric material used tocomprise plies 24 does not generally react favorably to being boundtogether via heat and/or heat and pressure, and intermediate medium 41can be added between plies 24 which is reactive to heat and when heatedwill interact with the fibers and fabric of ballistic panel assembliesto create a water impervious bond between plies 24.

Now referring to FIG. 9C, the same materials as disclosed in FIG. 9B canbe used with the method of FIG. 9C but instead of using a traditionalheat source which is used to thermally conduct heat along pinch arms 44,46, an ultrasonic welding device can be used to compress plies 24 andthen ultrasonically vibrate so that the frictional rubbing between plieswill result in a heat buildup which effectively bonds plies 24 forming aliquid impervious path. Optionally, a medium 41 can be inserted betweenplies if the plies are comprised of material such that they do not bindand adhere satisfactorily using ultrasonic vibrational weldingtechniques alone.

Although the present embodiments have been described in detail inconnection with the above disclosure, it should be understood that suchdetail is illustrative and not restrictive and that those skilled in theart can make various variations without departing from the spirit of thedisclosure. The scope of protection afforded herein is indicated by thefollowing claims rather than the foregoing description. All changes andvariations that come within the meaning and range of equivalency of theclaims are to be embraced within their scope.

What is claimed as new and desired to be protected by Letters Patent ofthe United States is:
 1. A ballistic panel, comprising: two or morelayers of ballistic material having a periphery; a peripheral liquidimpervious edge treatment continuously surrounding the periphery.
 2. Theballistic panel of claim 1, wherein said edge treatment includes tape.3. The ballistic panel of claim 1, wherein said edge treatment includestape having a back face and an adhesive face.
 4. The ballistic panel ofclaim 3, wherein said tape back face includes at least one of a polymerfiber, a fiberglass fiber, or a carbon fiber.
 5. The ballistic panel ofclaim 3, wherein said tape back face includes one of a fiber reinforcedpolymer and a metallic foil.
 6. The ballistic panel of claim 1, whereinsaid two or more layers of ballistic materials include a first plyhaving a first face and second ply having a second face, and whereinsaid edge treatment includes sizing the second ply large enough toextend across the edge portions of the two or more layers and toadditionally extend across at least a portion of the first face of thefirst ply.
 7. The ballistic panel of claim 6, wherein said second ply isjoined to the first face of the first ply using at least one of adouble-sided tape and adhesive interposed between said second ply andsaid first face of said first ply.
 8. The ballistic panel of claim 6,wherein said second ply is joined to the first ply sharing a commonmelted portion.
 9. The ballistic panel of claim 8, wherein said commonmelted portion is formed by vibrational welding.
 10. The ballistic panelof claim 6, wherein said second ply is joined to said first ply by wayof spanning the seam formed therebetween with a peripheral anti-liquidingress treatment.
 11. The ballistic panel of claim 6, wherein theperipheral , liquid impervious edge treatment includes a cap that spansa portion of the first face of the first ply, the second surface of thesecond ply and the entire edge portions of the two or more layers. 12.The ballistic panel of claim 11, wherein the cap is comprised at leastpartially of vinyl, metallic foil, polyester, polyamide, polyethylene,polypropylene, PTFE fiberglass, coated fabric.
 13. The ballistic panelof claim 12, wherein said cap is adhered to said first and second facesby way of at least one of an adhesive and a double-sided tape.
 14. Theballistic panel of claim 13, wherein the double-sided tape continuouslyspams the edge portions of the plies.
 15. The ballistic panel of claim12, wherein said cap is heat melted onto said first and second facesthereby forming a common melted region.
 16. The ballistic panel of claim15, wherein said cap is vibrationally melted to said first and secondfaces.
 17. The ballistic panel of claim 1, wherein said two or morelayers of ballistic material are joined to at least adjacent layers byway of a liquid impervious adhesive.
 18. The ballistic panel of claim 1,wherein said two or more layers of ballistic material are joined to atleast adjacent layers by way of a shard melted joint formed by heatstaking.
 19. The ballistic panel of claim 18, wherein the heat stakingis accomplished using an ultrasonic welder and ultrasonic weldingtechniques.
 20. The ballistic panel of claim 18, further including anintermediate medium residing between at least some of the two or morelayers for facilitating the integrity of the formation of a liquidimpervious bond formed during heat staking.